Jul. 5, 2013

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Summer celebrations are all about firing up the barbecue and relaxing with friends and family. But before you stock up on propane or charcoal, here are seven tips that will help make this season’s meals the best ever.

1. For tender pork, and poultry, brine first

Pork and chicken cooked on the grill can dry out fast — especially over direct heat. Brine them first and the meat will turn out juicy and flavorful every time.

This recipe is flexible to allow for innovation: Dissolve 2/3 cup kosher salt and 1/3 cup sugar into 2 quarts of water. Add any combination of herbs, lemon juice, spices or whatever else (tequila?) suits the food. Soak chicken pieces for 4 to 8 hours, and pork for no more than 2 hours. Allow time to let the poultry or meat air dry before you put it on the grill. You can also brine turkey (for a long time) and shrimp (for just a few minutes), but don’t brine beef or lamb, as these have more fat to keep them juicy.

2. For juicy burgers, handle gently

When shaping burger patties, work quickly and don’t pack the meat too tightly. (A few scraggly edges are OK; they’ll crisp up nicely.) Once you’ve shaped the patty the size you like — about 6 ounces per burger works well — use your thumb to make a depression in the center of the burger. This will keep it from puffing up as it cooks.

3.Use a chimney to light charcoal fires

The easiest and best way to get charcoal perfectly lit is to use a chimney starter, which lights briquettes or wood quickly without the use of lighter fluid, so your food tastes like food and not like chemicals. You can pick one up where barbecue grills and tools are sold. Set the galvanized steel cylinder on the bottom rack of your grill, fill the top with charcoal and the bottom with a sheet or two (no more) of newspaper. When the newspaper is lit, it burns and lights the charcoal above. It will take 10 to 20 minutes for the coals to be ready. You should see orange flame deep inside the chimney starter, and gray ash just starting to form on the charcoal at the top.

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Carefully — wear heatproof gloves — dump out the coals, using long-handled tongs to arrange as you like. Place the top grate on the grill, and be very careful where you set the chimney down to cool, as it will remain quite hot.

4.Match the flame to what’s being grilled

Some foods require cooking directly over high heat. Others do better cooked over a lower temperature — called indirect heat. You need to know which to use, and how to create an indirect-heat cooking area on your grill. Foods that cook fast (burgers, steaks) usually require direct heat. Foods that need more time (chicken, pork, ribs) do better over indirect heat.

To create an indirect-heat zone, turn off some of the burners on your gas grill, or build a charcoal fire on one side or the other of the grill (or on both, leaving the center bare, covered with a strip of aluminum foil to catch any drippings).

5.Clean the grill, every time

If you left a mess, first heat the grill until the grates are hot. Wad a softball-size bunch of foil and, holding it in tongs, scrape the grates — the cooked-on residue will come right off. You can also use half an onion to scrub off light buildup, which doubles as a flavor booster, too.

6. Use a grill pan for

delicate foods

Some foods are impossible to balance between the grates. Asparagus, for instance, or chopped onions and red peppers. For smaller, delicate foods, use a grill pan. Some are shaped like a basket, with a long handle, others resemble a cookie sheet with holes.

To set up vegetables for the grill, chop and season then place in a grill pan, and set on a sheet pan to wait its turn on the grill. After grilling the vegetables, transfer the hot grill pan — with a thick oven mitt — back onto the sheet pan for transporting.

7. Give meat a rest

before you cut

After you grill, let the meat rest on a cutting board for at least five or 10 minutes — even up to 15 minutes. It will still be hot, we promise.

If you slice, dice, carve or cut it before it rests, all the juices will seep out.

You don’t want the juices on the cutting board. You want them in your steak, so it will be juicy and delicious.